Northwest students get “schooled” in ballooning

 

[October 02, 2019] 

On Friday, September 20th, students at Northwest School spent a portion of their morning being “schooled” inside a hot air balloon. Pilot Donna Carlton Vish of Danville brought one of her hot air balloons that has been retired from the sky and did a cold air inflation for the students.

During a cold air inflation, the balloon doesn’t stand straight up in preparation for launch, but the large cold fan blowing into the envelope constantly does blow up the balloon to almost full capacity, and allows people to walk inside it.

When the balloon was full of air, the kids and teachers walked inside for their morning lesson. The classes filed in and everyone sat down in rows according to their grade level from fifth down to kindergarten. Then Vish spent the next few minutes speaking to the children.

The first impression by many of the students as they entered the balloon was one of awe as they got the grasp of just how large the balloon really was. When all the students were assembled and seated, they were really just a small speck inside the large envelope.

Vish explained to the children, that typically, no one would ever be allowed to walk on the silky material the balloon is made of. However, this particular balloon, while still inflatable is no longer flown in the sky. Instead, Vish uses it to teach children and adults about ballooning, or to just permit folks the opportunity to step inside and marvel at the size.

Vish told the children that ballooning takes a good amount of math and science skill. Pilots need to understand the impact of weather conditions on their balloon. They must understand wind speeds, and temperatures. They must also know their geography a bit so they can keep track of where they are when they are in the air. In addition, they have to be skillful in lifting off safely, but especially in landing safely.

Vish explained that when the balloon or envelop fills with hot air, the hot air is lighter than cooler air, so the envelope stands up. She pointed out the propane tanks in the basket and explained that when she is in the air, she is flying with a real fire and has to be cautious. She added that balloons today are safer than those first flown back in the 1800’s because then the fire was from wood, not gas.

Vish talked about safety around the balloons when they are inflating. She said most pilots are happy to have people volunteer to help in the “crew.” The crew members have specific jobs though, and the volunteers should not just run in and start doing stuff without asking. If someone wants to help it needs to be with the pilots permission, and allow the pilot or a crew member to offer instruction on what needs to be done.

She also noted that on Friday she had a special group crewing for her. The staff from Illinois American Water in Lincoln was helping out for the day and she thanked them for all their terrific help.

Using one of the fifth grade students as an assistant, Vish also talked about robe safety around the balloon. She noted there are many ropes connecting the balloon to the basket and also ropes that are used to control the balloon while it is being inflated. She said always be aware of all these robes when walking around a balloon. She added that when helping with a crew, if called on to man a rope, to always hold it with both hands, and to never do silly playful things like wrapping the rope around the neck.

Vish also talked about courtesy. She said that when in the air, she has a ground crew following her in a vehicle. When it comes time to land, she needs to find a nice open space where landing will be safe. Then, before she goes down, her crew is in contact with someone responsible for the land and makes sure they have permission to land. If they can’t get permission then they move on to another spot and try again. She said it is bad manners to do something without permission, so she always makes sure to ask before landing.

She added that most people are happy to give permission, and even excited about it as they get the opportunity to witness the landing. She remembered that one time she set her balloon down right in someone’s front yard. The family all gathered on the porch and watched the landing with great excitement.

Vish also fielded questions from the students. One asked about the size of her basket, and if that was the only size available. Vish said that there are a large number of basket styles used in ballooning. She noted that the basket the children were seeing on Friday was a two-person basket, meaning room for her as the pilot and only one passenger. She said there are baskets that are much larger, but the number of people in the basket impacts the weight of it, and the balloons ability to float. She said larger baskets require larger envelopes or balloons. She noted that the largest she has heard of is a basket that will hold about 20 people, but she said the balloon for that basket is about 20 times larger than the balloon the children were sitting in.

One student asked about the “N” number that was stamped on the envelope. Vish said in all the times she has done talks about the balloon, the young persona on Friday was the first one to ever ask that question. She complimented him on being so observant. She explained that like airplanes, she has to register her balloon with the Federal Aviation Administration. The number is used then to track the balloon back to the pilot. This is useful for state police and other officials who see the balloon in the air and have a question or concern about the balloon. They can call in the number and the FAA information can be relayed back to them in just a matter of minutes.

Some of the children used their question time to let Vish know that they have ridden in a balloon, would like to ride in a balloon, or would like to someday be a pilot themselves. Vish reminded them that being a pilot takes skill, but it also takes intelligence and education, so paying attention in school and learning math and science will be important to them if they want to be pilots.

As their time inside the balloon came to an end, Vish said she wanted to get a great big group photo of all the students for her memory collection. Everyone was happy to oblige. Then class by class, the students filed back out of the envelope and moved on to enjoy the rest of their school day.

[Nila Smith]